Philippine GGR at US$3bln in year to Sept 30: Pagcor

Gross gaming revenue (GGR) in the Philippines stood slightly above PHP158.36 billion (US$3 billion) in the first nine months of 2018, says the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor). GGR for the first nine months of this year already surpassed the figure recorded for full-year 2017, when the country’s gaming industry recorded aggregate GGR of PHP152.55 billion.

Nationwide casino GGR in the nine months to September 30 was PHP137.74 billion. Revenue from electronic gaming sites – including traditional bingo, electronic games and sports betting – reached nearly PHP20.62 billion in the period.

The data released this week marked the first time Pagcor disclosed GGR data for the country’s gaming industry since reporting earlier this year the figures for the fourth quarter of 2017. The Pagcor website offered no comparative figures for the prior-year period.

Private-sector casino resorts in the Philippines capital Manila recorded overall GGR of approximately PHP103.12 billion in the first nine months of 2018. Manila’s private-sector casino resort sector includes four properties, namely: City of Dreams Manila; Solaire Resort and Casino (pictured); Resorts World Manila; and Okada Manila.

Aside from being the sector’s regulator, Pagcor directly operates a suite of state-run casinos, called “Casino Filipino”. Such casinos recorded GGR of PHP27.11 billion in the January to September period. According to Pagcor’s website, the brand operates venues in nine locations across the country, and has a further 31 so-called “satellite” sites across the Philippines.

Gross income from gaming operations at Pagcor rose 18.7 percent year-on-year in the first nine months of 2018, according to official data filed in October.

In the third quarter alone, aggregate nationwide GGR – for electronic gaming sites and casinos combined – was PHP52.93 billion. Casino revenue was approximately PHP45.81 billion in the three months to September 30, while revenue from electronic gaming venues stood at nearly PHP7.12 billion.

A report in the Philippine Daily Inquirer last Thursday quotes Pagcor head Andrea Domingo as saying Philippine annual GGR is likely to rise to PHP192 billion this year.

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